JEDDAH, 7 January 2005 — Prince Saud ibn Turki heads a group of 21 riders from Saudi Arabia who will be competing with 98 others to conquer Moreb Hill at the Red Bull Reach the Top set for two days from Jan. 12-13. “They’ll all set out to reach the venue in time,” Bassem El Zein, Red Bull communication manager for Saudi Arabia & Yemen, told Arab News.
In addition to Capt. Ahmad Al Sheggawi and his Brunjee team, the other Saudis are from Makkah, Riyadh, Jeddah, Qassim and Alkhobar, he said.
In all 119 participants have registered so far for the competition to conquer UAE’s Sand Mountain famed for breaking hearts and engines. Moreb Hill is the towering natural sand mountain with a fearsome international reputation.
The Moreb Hill will surely win more battles than it loses when the Middle East’s toughest 4WD and motorbike competitors take on its 300m face in next week’s Red Bull Reach The Top challenge.
“The two-day motor sport festival is the latest chapter in the story of a natural wonder that has broken hearts, souls and engines and has firmly established itself as one of the most popular venues in regional competition,” he added. Only recently, the bivouac for the UAE Desert Challenge made its home in the shadow of the enormous dune as its international reputation continues to soar.
Since 2002, Moreb Hill has been the focus of attention for several extreme motor sport events but it is the Red Bull Reach The Top challenge — now in its second year — that has taken it to another level.
In April 2004, several thousand spectators trekked 30 minutes into the Empty Quarter to witness a floodlit and colourful procession of bikes, quads and expensively customised 4WD vehicles as each attempted to roar up the sheer 60-degree face of Moreb Hill.
“More often than not, it was the awesome sand dune — one of the largest in the world — that proved the winner as dozens of riders and drivers were forced back to the pits having failed to scale its punishing height,” he said.
From a standing start, competitors are allowed two runs up the face of the hill. The bikes are allowed to turn around if their first bid is unsuccessful, while the four-wheel challengers must reverse back to the start to begin their second attempt.
“The Red Bull Reach The Top event certainly captures the imagination of bikers and car enthusiasts who enjoy an extreme challenge,” said Ahmed Shehi of event organizers SportStars.
“The first Red Bull-backed competition in April 2004 was a massive success and we anticipate an even greater number of local and regional competitors next week.”
